Thousands turn out for Scotland’s Pedal on Parliament

Thousands of people on bikes turned out for today’s Pedal on Parliament in Edinburgh. Another ride is taking place in Glasgow tomorrow, where the Scottish transport minister Humza Yousaf will speak.

Some on Twitter have said up to 10,000 riders took part although the event organisers have downplayed this estimate, adding that police said that there were more riders this year than last.

There were also rides in Aberdeen and Inverness. This was the sixth annual Pedal on Parliament.

Led out by the Talking Tandems, whose riders don’t let visual impairment keep them off two wheels, the protest ride took in the Royal Mile before finishing outside the Scottish parliament.

Speaking at Holyrood, Alison Johnson for the Greens said: “If we invest properly in cycling we can cut congestion, and air pollution and tackle obesity and children can cycle to school. If you look at what happens in the Netherlands children have independence – and where people can cycle easily it benefits those on low incomes the most.

For the Liberal Democrats, Alex Cole-Hamilton said: “It is so important to have people here at parliament and council offices across the country. This should be a cross party issue, for Scotland in 2017 is still the sick man of Europe and we have to change that.”